As I was making the upcoming tutorial for the ladder necklace it occurred to me that making wire wrapped links was going to be a large part of the project. So I decided to make an info-graphic for wire wrapped links as a reference guide to anybody who would like to make the ladder necklace but does not know how to make wire wrapped links. This is part of the on-going DIY BASICS section of the blog. I will be slowly trying to get these DIY basic techniques up and have them all in one section soon.
That way anybody following along will always know where to go to refresh their memory on a certain material or technique they aren’t sure about. Learn How to Crimp This jewelry lesson is by far the easiest and most important to learn when starting to make jewelry. After you learn how to crimp you can make endless different kinds of necklaces, bracelets, and ankle bracelets. Once you learn how to crimp you can experiment with different patterns and types of beads and make all kinds of jewelry just in your style! To demonstrate how to crimp I whipped up this simple but elegant strung necklace this afternoon: (If your not into making jewelry, this necklace is also for sale in my etsy shop!)
Here's how to make it! Supplies Needed Beading wire, needle nose pliers, wire cutters, crimp beads, clasp, and beads of your choosing. I'm using tiger tail as my beading wire, which you can get at Michael's or Joann's. StepsStep 1: Cut a piece of beading wire using wire cutters a few inches longer than your finished product will be. Step 2: String on a crimp bead and one end of the clasp of your choosing. I choose to use a pretty heart toggle clasp. As promised, here is another installment of DIY BASICS. This time we are focusing on a little guide to the types of necklaces and the lengths that correspond to them.
Knowing where you want a necklace to fall on the body is an extremely important part of the design process. Certain necklace silhouettes only work at certain lengths. For instance: a bib necklace is always going to fall somewhere between 14 and 16 inches. It also helps you to determine which necklace length is appropriate to add a dangling pendant or tassel. Have a look, familiarize yourself with the picture and bookmark or pin this page. Also, don’t forget to follow my blog with bloglovin because Google is doing away with Google friend connect very soon! Jewelry Lessons: How to Wire-Wrap Jewelry Part 2 - My Girlish Whims. How to Wire Wrap: Part 2 Ready to learn how to do some more wire-wrapping? Today I'm going to show you how to wire-wrap a pendant with these pretty crystal earrings! Note: These are also available for sale in my etsy shop. I can also do kits for the supplies if you are interested.
Scroll to the bottom of the post for more info. Supplies: Around 22 gauge wire, two small jump rings, two earring wires, two crystal briolettes, needle nose pliers, wire cutters, and round nose pliers. StepsStep One: Cut two pieces of wire around six inches long with wire cutters Step Two: String on a crystal briolette towards the end of the wire Step Three: Bend the two ends of the wire across the top of the briolette to form a triangle Step Four: Grasp the middle of the triangle with bent nose pliers.
Step Five: Keep this wire wrap short - only two or three wraps. Step Six: Grab the top of the wire with round nose pliers and bring it down to beneath the wire-wraps you just made. Here are both: My Girlish Whims: Jewelry Lessons. I get a lot of questions from people on where I buy my beads and jewelry supplies. I thought I'd do a post with the low down on where I get them from! Where to Buy Beads and Jewelry Supplies Bead Shows Bead shows normally roll into a venue for a long weekend. These shows are great places to STOCK UP!
Bead shows are normally pretty exhausting. The BEST bead show I have been to is Bead Fest. I also go to The Innovative Bead Expo, which goes to a few more states on the East Coast. If your interested in going to a bead show but these don't come to your area, flip through a Bead & Button or Bead Style magazine next time you are at a bookstore - there are tons of ads in there for bead shows all over America. Craft Stores These are your Michaels, Joanns, AC Moores, and Hobby Lobbys (never been to a Hobby Lobby though--do they actually have jewelry supplies? Just in my opinion...I'm not that big of a fan of AC Moore. I normally go to Michaels/Joanns for jewelry making supplies. Local Bead Stores. How to Marbleize Old Beads with Nail Polish. I’m currently in the middle of designing a new range of jewellery to sell on my Etsy shop.
One of the great things about having this time to experiment with designs is that I’m actually using new tools and components that I have previously overlooked or have been unable to find a suitable use for. This is giving me tons of new ideas for new tutorials that I just had to share. How ace is that!? One of the things I’ve found out is jump rings don’t have to be rings. (Why are they called jump rings anyway!?) These triangular jump rings are one of my new favourite supplies and they are so easy to make. You can create them as subtle or as bold as you like depending on the wire colour and thickness.
Materials: Beads Wire Cutters & Flat Nose Pliers Instructions: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Related. Marbled Beads: 6 Steps (with Pictures) Finish Strings of Beads with Bead Tips. You can make beautiful jewelry from strings of beads but it can be difficult to finish in an attractive, professional, and durable way. That’s where bead tips come in – also known as calottes, bead clamps, clam shells, bead ends and string tips, they’re just a handy little metal finding that makes finishing the ends of bead strands a breeze. Supplies: – bead tips – beading thread and needle – needle nose pliers – sharp scissors – jeweler’s cement/superglue/E6000/clear nail polish Thread your needle and tie a few overhand knots near the end.
I use 4 strands of beading thread for extra durability, and at least 4 overhand knots (on top of each other.) Put a drop of glue into the bead tip. Set the knot into the glue. Make sure the loop on the bead tip is on the same side as the short end of your threads. If you have an end-clamp style you should thread the string through the hole and then set the knot into the glue. Gently close the bead tip over the knot with the pliers. Glue and clamp this end. Learning New Tricks: Stamped Jewelry - Suburble. The basics of jewellery making - lesson one. I'm so excited to be starting a new series today, I'm going to go right back to the start and will teach you how to make jewellery from scratch. I hope that you will all join in the fun, please tweet, instagram and email me any questions, I am building this series as I go so anything you want to know just ask. Use the hashtag #happymaking with any of your pictures and I will share my favourites on the site too. Whoop, lets start!
You can't do anything without the right tools, I have tried in the past to make do but it just doesn't work. Here are the essentials from my tool kit Pens and pencils - I'm never without an HB pencil, Stabilo fine liners (in black and various colours colours) and colour pencils. Double sided tape - 6mm is my absolute essential but I always have a roll of 1.2cm in my kit Pattern square - I have had this since I was sixteen and I have used it on every single project I have ever made, from wedding dresses to bracelets this is the one item I cannot do with out.
The basics of jewellery making - lesson two. For today's second jewellery making lesson we're going to be talking findings. Findings refer to all the bits and pieces that connect and fasten, they come in so many different colours, I have (badly) photographed only gold pieces here but I have all the above in silver too. If you visit any bead shop you can usually buy findings individually for a few pence which is perfect if you are just starting out as it means you can test different pieces and see what you like working with before committing to buying 100's of one item. The cheapest findings to buy are gold or silver plated, you can buy sterling silver or gold filled but thats when things start to get expensive so hold off until you have a few pieces under your belt. For all my tutorials I use gold plated and they last a good few years without becoming too tarnished. Here's what I recommend buying for a basic finding kit Top row from left to right Third Row from left to right.
The basics of jewellery making - lesson three. So we're up to lesson three which means we can finally get on with making something - whoop! The very first technique you need to know is opening and closing a jump ring. Perfect this and you'll be able to make so much, used for fastening clasps and attaching just about anything the humble jump ring is the basis for so many projects.
Here's how you do it... Step 1. Taking two pairs of pliers tightly clamp each pair either side of the opening of the jump ring. Step 2. Step 3. Your homework for this week is to get practicing, buy yourself a bag of jump rings and get going, all the above projects are perfect to get practicing on. Missed the previous lessons, don't worry the links are below:Lesson one - toolsLesson two - findings.
The basics of jewellery making - lesson four. I can't believe we are up to lesson four, we're just over half way through the basics of jewellery making as there are a few more techniques that I still want to share with you. For today I'm looking at crimps and calottes. Crimps come in different sizes I normally have a few 1mm in as well as the larger 2mm size in my box. They are really easy to use and when paired with a calotte give a really professional finish to your jewellery.
Step 1. I normally use tiger tail for threading but you can use thread. Thread your crimp onto the tiger tail and position about 1cm from the end. Step 2. Step 3. See? For this weeks homework its more looking and practicing. Workshop - Introduction to Jewellery Making. I've been teaching locally for almost a year now at Make, Do and Mend in Chelmsford. Hannah, Hayley and Alie have made me feel so welcome, I really look forward to teaching my tutorials to all the lovely ladies that come along.
At times teaching still feels very new but I'm slowly figuring it all out, I've learnt that I can't do enough preparation and am really grateful to the team for letting my try new ideas and classes. Teaching people to make and be creative has turned into a bigger passion than I ever thought it would be and seeing all my tutorials come to life is amazing, I always try and take a few seconds to observe, I'm so hard on myself I need to remember take pride in what I am doing and how far I have come in a year (see first workshop post here). A few Saturdays ago I taught an Introduction to Fashion Jewellery - three techniques, three bracelets, three hours.
Statement Necklace - 9th August and 15th September Introduction to Fashion Jewellery - 18th August. Basics of Seed Beads. Seed beads offer endless options for making jewelry, apparel and home accessories, but they can be complicated. We’ve posted some projects that make use of seed beads and have received a lot of questions about sizing, finishes, shapes, and styles. This should help answer a lot of those questions. Finishes Left: Opaque Glass Bead Right: Matte Opaque Glass Bead Matte Transparent Glass Beads Glass beads come in a huge variety of finishes, and bead makers are always trying to invent more.
Standard: If your beads don’t specify a finish, it’s usually safe to assume they’re made of ordinary shiny glass. Matte/Frost: Beads with this finish don’t reflect light – they look like they’ve been etched or sand blasted. Transparent: Light passes through the glass. Opaque: Light does not pass through the glass. Milky: In between transparent and opaque, some light passes through. AB/Aurora Borealis/Iridescent/Rainbow: A finish that reflects light in a variety of colors. Sizing 8/0 Seed Beads 11/0 Seed Beads. Friction Knot for Beadwork. Wire-Linked Beads. Stringing beads with wire is a timeless jewelry style and a great way to make a secure string of beads.
Supplies and Equipment: – jewelry wire – anything from brass to sterling or gold will work, try to use the largest wire that will fit through your beads – beads – tiny holes aren’t great for this – jump rings – optional – you can always make some from the same wire if you want– round nose pliers – needle nose pliers – wire cutters This is a great time to use fancy wires and jump rings because they’re such an important part of your design!
Slide a bead onto the wire. With the needle nose pliers, bend the end of the wire at a 90º angle. Use the round nose pliers to turn that section of wire into a loop. Slide the bead up to the loop and bend the other end of the wire at 90º, making sure the bend is as close to the bead as possible. Cut the wire leaving the same length on this end that you used to make the other loop. Bend that section of wire into a loop. Make a bunch. Opening and Closing Jump Rings. Jump rings are those little loops of metal that hold jewelry together. There are hundreds of them in the woven chain collar project, and at least a few in most jewelry projects. Opening and closing them the right way will make your project work easier and it will keep your jump rings stronger. The more you bend metal the weaker it gets, so this technique maximizes how open the jumpring is (making it easier to loop through other things) while minimizing how much you have to bend it.
It’s also the easiest way to get it closed neatly. When you open or close a jumpring you want to twist it. A properly closed jump ring has both ends meeting. It may seem like a small difference, but it amounts to a lot. Necessity Breeds a New Wire Wrap Technique. Practical Necklace Cheat Sheet - Somewhat Simple. How to Wire Wrap a Teardrop Bead for Earrings and Pendants - The Silly Pearl. Learn How to Solder to Create Beautiful Jewelry: 11 Steps (with Pictures) 999. Fine Silver Heart Pendant From Clay!!!: 7 Steps (with Pictures) Copper Etched Earrings: 7 Steps (with Pictures)
Bangle Bracelet With Tahitian Pearl: 9 Steps (with Pictures) Basics of Twisting Wire for Jewelry: 4 Steps (with Pictures) Stamped Charm Bangle, and How to Add Eyelets to Metal Blanks - Happy Hour Projects. Using Jewelry Connectors To Make Easy Earrings - Happy Hour Projects. Jewelry Stamping - Happy Hour Projects. Jewelry Tips - 10 Jewelry Making Basics Everyone Can Master. DIY Copper Ring Jewelry. How To Make Jewelry | Plaid Online.
{DIY} Re-Purpose Your Old, Outdated Jewelry - Picklee. Must-have jewelry making supplies for beginners. How to Make Jewelry - an easy Guide for Beginners! How to teach yourself how to make jewelry. My Girlish Whims: Jewelry Lessons. Jewelry Lessons: How to Wire-Wrap Jewelry Part 2 - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Lessons: How to Wire-Wrap Jewelry Part 1 - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Lessons: How to Create a Simple Loop and DIY Wedding Earrings - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Lessons: How to Create a Simple Loop and DIY Wedding Earrings - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Lessons: Essential Jewelry Tools and Supplies - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Lessons: Jewelry Making Supplies - The Beads! - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Lessons: How To Use Crimp Beads - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Lessons: How to Make Earrings - My Girlish Whims.
Jewelry Lessons: How To Use Jump Rings - My Girlish Whims. Jewelry Findings Guide - JoAnn. Metal Stampings Basics - JoAnn. That's What {Che} Said... | Hand Stamped Jewelry + Giveaway!! - That's What {Che} Said... Wire Wrapped Jewelry Basics - The Silly Pearl.